A Month to Rebuild a Life
by ImJustNutty
Summary: After the Outer Lands are lowered Guy returns to Malkuth as the lost son. He's spent two thirds of his life as a servant for his hated enemy, and now he's gotten all that he had been able to reclaim. He ends up forming a stronger bond with Jade, the only familiar face for miles. Meanwhile, the rest of the world copes with living in the Qliphoth.
1. Chapter 1

When they walked out of the Sephiroth, everyone was silent. The fight with Van had been draining, and as Guy watched Tear stare blankly at the snow cliffs, he realised how many of them had had some form of relationship with Van.

Luke had been trying to find who he was. Stopping…no, killing Van…was supposed to solve his problems. Instead, it seemed to have the converse effect. Tear, of course, had mixed feelings regarding the death of her brother. Anise had worked with him in the Oracle Knights. Natalia had seen him since her youth, since Van had been visiting the manor for years.

Only Jade hadn't interacted with Van personally, but he looked thoughtful all the same. He noticed Guy looking at him, and pushed up his glasses. "Something the matter, Guy?"

The rest of the party was apparently too depressed and shocked with the recent events that no one reacted to Jade's sudden words. Guy slowed his steps, letting himself fall in step beside Jade. "Well…I was just thinking about Van. When we were younger, ya know."

"Ah, yes. You two were friends since young." Jade smiled briefly, then shook his head. "Knowing you, you aren't silly enough to suggest that we hadn't killed him or anything."

"No, of course not. It's just that—" Guy paused, then shut his mouth. He realised that he was about the monologue about his past, and it was hardly necessary. Everyone was tired, and it's not like anyone needed to know about young Gailardia's life. Guy didn't need to tell anyone. He smiled. "Never mind. But anyway, you look like you're pretty bothered too. That's pretty rare."

Jade raised an eyebrow. "I do? Well, I was just thinking about all the paperwork I have to prepare for His Majesty now. And the worst part is that he probably won't even read it." He folded his arms. "That, and all the trouble we have to deal with now that we're living in the Qliphoth."

"Yeah…" Guy grinned, thinking of Jade swamped with all the paperwork while Peony hovered behind him whining about his life.

"And what are you looking so happy about? His Majesty will probably rope you in for administrative work too." Jade's glasses glinted in the sunlight. Guy winced at the thought. Perhaps he really should return to Kimlasca.

Noelle dropped Jade and Guy outside Grand Chokmah after their stop at Daath. Anise had left with Ion, promising to write, and reassuring Guy that should he change his mind about not wanting to marry her, he could direct a letter to the Cathedral. He promised to consider it.

As he stepped out of the Albiore behind Jade, Luke gripped his shoulder. "Guy, I'm really sorry about…well, everything. And I'm…"

"Hey, I said not to worry about it, didn't I?" Guy smiled, grasping Luke on the arm in return.

"Yeah…but to think a noble like you had to work as a servant…" Luke pursed his lips, then grinned. "Well, now you're going to get your stuff and everything back. You're a noble now…well, always had been, really."

Guy tilted his head, then pulled Luke into a hug. "I'm going to miss you too, you little idiot."

"Mm." Luke buried his face in Guy's shoulder, like he was a child. "Me too."

When Noelle finally flew off, Jade looked at Guy. "Do you really want to stay in Malkuth? It is your original home, but it seems you already have some bond with the Fabre Household."

"No," he said firmly. "Honestly, everytime I saw Duke Fabre, I…" Guy clenched his fists, then shook his head. "I am Luke's friend, but that's all I have in my heart for Kimlasca. Well, and Natalia, of course. Besides, the girls in Malkuth are prettier and they seem to respect personal space!"

Jade laughed. "Well, we'll see about that."

They went to Grand Chokmah, and Guy felt like skipping slightly. Van was gone, and he now had a proper place to call home. He loved Malkuth for its calm atmosphere, and while they didn't invest in fon machine research as much as Kimlasca did, there were still things to admire. Perhaps they had other works of art like the Tartarus around.

At the palace, Jade delivered his report to Peony. Guy filled in for certain parts where Jade requested for him to ("Guy, if you would please?" "I thought this was _your_ report to the Emperor?!" "Oh, I'm afraid that in my old age I might have forgotten some things…"). Jade ended with a brief description of their battle, and it was then that Guy realised that that had only been the day before. Peony nodded.

"I'll have to send a few guards to patrol the area and conduct further investigations. Good work, Jade. And you too, Gailardia." He stood up and stretched his arms in a rather un-majestic manner. Sesemann frowned disapprovingly.

"Your Majesty, there is still the issue of House Gardios' assets?" Jade added, giving a sideway glance at Guy. Guy gave a small smile in thanks. He honestly wasn't sure how he was supposed to ask for his things, since the last time he'd been officially part of House Gardios was fourteen years ago.

"Right. Well, I'm free now, and pretty bored. I'll bring you to get the paperwork done, and then we can go see your new crib!" Peony walked down the steps, and Sesemann couldn't help but sigh heavily.

"Your Majesty, we do not use terms like 'crib' to describe somebody's mansion. Especially that of a noble's."

"Well, Gailardia here doesn't mind. Do you, Gailardia?" Peony swung an arm around Guy's shoulders, and Guy tried to hold in his grin as the adviser sighed again in exasperation.

Jade had left when Peony and Guy were done at the clerk's office. Jade had given some excuse about his old age and aching back, before disappearing in the general direction of the military headquarters. Guy glanced at the fading light in the sky. He was surprised Jade had spent that long waiting with him.

"Your Majesty, it is getting rather late. I think I can locate the mansion myself…" Guy felt bad about having the Emperor of Malkuth as his personal guide.

"Nah, don't worry about it. Besides, how could I have you getting lost tomorrow before the dinner with the House of Lords? Then I'll have to give some lame excuse about my newest noble being a incapacitated from something as mild as battle injuries. Speaking of which I'll get the physician to pop by after I'm done." Peony strode on, and Guy had no choice but to follow him. The guards they passed saluted as they passed, and some people bowed respectfully. Guy felt extremely awkward, knowing of course that they were bowing to Peony. He'd been a servant for much too long, he supposed.

Peony glanced at Guy, and laughed. "Well, soon they'll be bowing to you too. Get used to it. Although I know I haven't."

"Haha…they can't possibly tell I'm a noble."

"Oh, of course they will. I'll get Jade to help you buy some new clothes. We can't have you running around Grand Chokmah with that get-up."

Guy felt a tad insulted. He was fond of that outfit, mostly because it was comfortable and had served him well. Besides, he looked good in it. Or so the maids at the fon Fabre's had said. He quashed the feeling of nostalgia rising in his chest. "Jade would know about fashion?" he said quickly.

"Well, he knows about enough to get by, although he has the excuse of wearing his military outfit all the time. House Curtiss is one of our oldest families, and Jade has had the sense of listening to them and becoming a noble worthy of the name."

That was true, Jade was a noble. Guy found that difficult to wrap his mind around. Peony suddenly stopped before a gate, and Guy looked up and around. They'd walked behind the palace, and then to a road where there were a lot of small side roads leading to gates in the distance. They were mansions, he realised. Each mansion probably needed a lot of space, so they needed to be spaced out even farther.

And the mansion of House Gardios was right at the end of a road, secluded from the main street. Peony misinterpreted the look on Guy's face. "Oh, don't worry about the distance. We could get you a land buggy to take you to the main street if you don't like walking…"

"No, it's fine, really. I was a servant, I think I can deal with some walking." Guy smiled to reassure the Emperor. He pushed away his thoughts of how lonely it would be, in a distant land made all the more prominent with his mansion's proximity from the main streets.

"Well, make yourself at home. I had the placed spruced up before your arrival, although it's not completely done yet. There's a cook and a servant inside, so you're pretty much settled for today. We're in the process of finding the other servants assigned to House Gardios, who were probably reassigned to other Houses temporarily. Don't worry, though. Malkuth owes your family for the events of Hod."

Guy's stomach churned at that reminder, but he forced a smile and bade the Emperor a good evening. He pushed open the gleaming white gates. There was a short path to the main door from there, and two large patches of green lawn on either side. The mansion itself was in the centre of a lawn that circled it, unlike that of House Fabre's which had the garden inside. He supposed it was for the best—the insects would stay out. The building was two storeys high, with large square windows all firmly shut. He could see blue curtains on the inside. Shutting the gate, he walked down the path. His boots tapped against the perfect marble path, and when he reached the door it opened. A man in a suit greeted him, introducing himself as Cyril, the son of the butler who once served the Gardios family. He was informed that dinner would be ready in about half an hour, and His Majesty had sent a physician down to inspect him after dinner would that be alright sir. And with that Guy dismissed Cyril, yes sir I'll call you down later sir.

As Cyril left, his soft footsteps echoing in the empty hall, Guy looked around. He vaguely remembered coming here with his parents when he was young. Mary had sat in an old antique style chair beside the window over there, under a huge portrait of an elder Gardios. The portrait was gone, and he could see the large discoloured rectangle on the wall where it had once hung, starring gloomily at the child Gailardia when he scuttled about the house. Guy walked up the faded carpeted steps, running a hand along the smooth marble bannister. It wasn't dusty at all, and the brass borders had been polished. Much of the furniture had been removed, but he knew they would all be back by the next day. There were so many rooms on the top floor. He turned a corner, and looked out of the window. He had a beautiful view of the ocean from there, and of the water barrier that surrounded the capital. He put a hand to the silk curtains. They felt clean and newly washed.

Guy leaned against the window and pressed his forehead against the glass. He hadn't felt this lonely in years.

Peony had been thoughtful. The cook was male, and there weren't any maids around yet. Cyril served Guy a delicately roasted rappig loin with sautéed onions and an exotic amango sauce on a porcelain platter with gold trimming- which was honestly a very nice change from cheap inn stews and Natalia's poisonous cooking ("What on Auldrant did you put in this sandwich?!"). The chef—whose name was Neil – was pleased with Guy's compliments, and inquired to his preferences in dishes. Guy was about to say he liked beef stew before he realised that was actually Luke's favourite. He wracked his brains for such a long while that Neil apologised for asking such a question. Guy shook his head and laughed, replying at last that he would be glad to eat anything Neil could concoct. That answer reassured the chef, and he retreated to the kitchen.

Guy leaned back in the high backed chair. Sitting at the head of the long mahogany table he looked about the dining room. He decided he ought to get a few plants, perhaps. Brighten up the room. He had seen a small fountain that worked on a mechanism involving some small fon machine in a shop which he could just picture sitting in that corner. He hoped it wouldn't gather dust. It would be a pain to clean, he knew that for sure.

Cyril interrupted Guy's thoughts as he cleared the plate. "Sir, the physician has arrived. He's in the main hall."

"R-right. Thanks, Cyril." He moved to stand up, and Cyril pulled his chair back for him. Guy moved out awkwardly, banging his knee against the solid wood table leg. "Really, it's no issue. I can handle it…"

"It is of no matter, sir." Cyril bowed and left the dining room. Guy blinked, then went out the other way to the main hall. He saw the physician in the main hall, looking out of the window. The physician turned at the sound of Guy's boots against the stone floor.

"And you are…?"

"I'm Gu—uh, Gailardia. You must be the doctor."

The physician seemed almost surprised, and Guy realised that he hadn't changed since he'd arrived. He'd moped around and lay on his bed until Cyril rang him down.

"Well, alright. Where shall we begin the examination?"

"Ah, right."

Guy turned and looked in the mirror. Cyril had brought him some bedclothes, but even they felt too nice to be worn. He pinched the smooth fabric between his fingers. It seemed to be made of some kind of silk. He sighed, running a hand through his damp washed blond hair. It would take some time before he could adjust.

There came a knock at the door, and Guy went to open it. Cyril stood there, looking pristine as always in his suit. It had to be a butler thing—Guy couldn't remember a time Ramdas didn't look perfectly groomed. "Sir, Colonel Jade Curtiss is here."

Guy nearly choked. "Jade's here? Where is he?"

"I showed him to the living room. He's waiting for you."

"R-right. Do I look okay?" He blurted out. Then he realised that sounded strange, and stuttered. "I mean, is this like, normal gear to meet a guest around here?"

Cyril blinked. "I would suppose that the Colonel should have expected as much, seeing as it is rather late at night already."

"Okay." He glanced at his reflection in the mirror, then followed Cyril out. He walked down the stairs, and Cyril opened the door to the living room for Guy before he left to …do whatever it was butlers did. Jade sat by the fireplace in a black shirt and pants, nursing a glass of wine.

"Hey Jade, thought you'd be asleep already, being all tired and all." Guy had to repress the urge to run over and hug Jade. It felt like it had been forever since he'd been with his friends.

"Well, we old people don't sleep too well at night. That, and His Majesty sent me over in place of the usual female attendants for company. Seems he thinks I'm more your type."

Guy laughed at that. "I assure you, Colonel, that I'd prefer the girls any day. As long as they don't come too near."

"I doubt they would, considering that outfit you're wearing," he replied with a small smirk. Guy winced. He decided not to trust Cyril's judgment with clothes again.

"But then, I'm used to seeing you in a much worse state, when we've been travelling for days without a decent inn," continued Jade smoothly. Guy sat beside him in the sofa, laughing again.

"Heh. Speaking of which, Emperor Peony wanted you to be my fashion advisor."

"Did he now?" Jade sighed. "That's right, I had forgotten. Tomorrow is your official inauguration into the House of Lords. And you haven't a thing to wear."

"Yeah." Guy pressed his lips tightly thinking of what he'd have to deal with the next day. "Will you be there?"

"Hmm? Ah, yes. I'll be representing House Curtiss. Despite me having been adopted into the family I'm the only male heir available at this time."

"Oh. Great, that's a relief."

Jade turned to him and raised an eyebrow. "I can't blame you for that. All the attention will be on you, the lost son of Malkuth returned. At least I don't have to worry about you tripping over some lady's skirt, or spilling wine on your own shirt."

"As opposed to Luke, maybe?" Guy laughed at the memory of Luke's first formal event, where he'd managed to knock over three tall standing tables and broken the ice sculpture in the punch….but then, he'd only been three years old then, hadn't he? He sobered up at that. Jade looked at him with mild concern.

"It's uncommon for you to look this serious, Gailardia." He stood up and walked to the corner table, pouring out another glass of wine. Guy looked up at his slender silhouette in the fire light.

"I guess I'm just feeling….out-of-place." He sighed, leaning back into the couch. "I haven't been in Malkuth as ….as a member of House Gardios for more than a decade. For once, I'm treated like I'm ….somebody. Not just a servant, or someone who's supposed to be in the background. Not seen and heard, just there to be used. I see Cyril, and Neil, and I think I'm totally not worthy to be greeted or served or whatever." He closed his eyes. "I wanted revenge for my family, but now that I've claimed my right to House Gardios back, I realise…maybe this isn't what I want."

He opened his eyes again, and Jade was standing before him, holding out a crystal goblet of wine. Guy accepted it, and Jade sat back down next to him. "I'm sorry, but this is the best that Malkuth can do as…compensation. To restore your family's name, instead of writing it away as part of a history that should never have happened."

"Yeah….family. My identity as a citizen of Malkuth. It's all too new. It's supposed to be my home, but I'm feeling more like a stranger here. This house is too big for just one guy."

"Was that a pun?" Jade downed the rest of his own wine, setting the goblet gently on the side table. "Guy, you need to relax. You're just feeling a little homesick. Even if you hated Duke Fabre, that manor was your home. But now you have a new one." He smiled warmly, and Guy wondered if that was the fire light playing tricks with his eyes. "You also have the Emperor who's probably willing to entertain any requests you have, other than perhaps roasting any of his rappigs, and you have me. And, because I had anticipated that this would happen, I'll be staying over here for tonight and we can eat cookies with milk and tell scary ghost stories together until dawn breaks."

"Wait, what?" Guy nearly spluttered.

"Well, alright, we can hold off the milk and cookies. But since Tear isn't here I thought I could finally impress someone with my wide repertoire of horror stories."

Guy stared at Jade, then threw back his head and laughed. "You're unbelievable!" Then he shook his head, and looked down at his knees. "Thank you, Jade. You have no idea how happy this makes me, really."

"Don't mention it. Now," Jade's glasses glinted in the light. "Have you heard the one about the woman who dwells in Mt. Roneal?"


	2. Chapter 2

Guy opened his eyes at the sound of the curtains being drawn. He pushed back the quilt from over his head and blinked at the ceiling façade and the chandelier.

"Oh right. I have a home now," he thought. He pushed himself upright on the sofa. The fire in the fireplace was kept small. He vaguely remembered the events of the night before—Jade had literally kept him up all night with mildly terrifying ghost stories, to which he'd countered with some tales of his own about poltergeists in the Fabre manor. They'd also drunk quite an awful lot, and had both fallen asleep in the living room on the couches.

Or so he thought.

"Cyril? Where's Jade?"

Cyril walked over from the window after securing the curtains to the side. "In the dining room, having breakfast. Shall I add more wood to the fire, sir?"

Guy squinted at Cyril's silhouette against the sunlight flooding in. "Uh, no. It's fine. Could you get some ginger tea or something?"

"Well well, Guy, I see you're experienced in this." Guy turned, and Jade—wearing his usual military gear—walked in from the main hall with a mug of what smelled like ginger. He handed it to Guy, and settled on the other couch. Guy sipped the hot liquid, and sighed as relief washed over his pounding head.

"I had to teach Luke when he insisted we go to the bar." Guy shook his head at the memory. Luke had thrown up everywhere, and the maids had forced him to help clean up. Guy made sure to confine himself to the garden for most of the rest of his work there. "Still, where did you get that outfit?"

"Standard issue Malkuth military uniform. If you're inquiring as to why I'm dressed already, it's almost noon, the dinner is in five hours and the Curtiss mansion is a give minute walk away." Jade smirked at Guy's horrified expression as he turned to stare at a wooden clock on the wall and fell out unceremoniously from the couch in his attempt to struggle out of the quilt.

"Five hours?! I haven't even gotten a thing to wear! Argh…can I just not go? Oh, but his Majesty would kill me…"

"Relax, Gailardia. The Emperor has hired me as your personal fashion advisor, which means we'll be done with time to spare." He stood up and turned to leave. "That is, if you emerge victorious from your epic battle with that oversized blanket."

Cyril had equipped Guy with sandwiches, which Guy chewed on happily as they walked out from the Gardios' mansion. "So, which one of these is your house?" said Guy, between bites.

"That would be the next one….there. With the blue and black colour scheme. Each House has their own colours, and the Curtiss family's would be blue and black. Yours should be blue and green, if memory serves me well."

"Why do you call it the Curtiss family? I mean, it's your family."

"No…not exactly." Jade pushed up his glasses. "It's…well, I was adopted into the family. While they've been kind enough to…" Jade seemed uncertain whether to continue, and Guy kicked himself for asking. He should have known better. Jade glanced at Guy, then looked away. "Well, it's natural for you to ask. My name _is_ Jade Curtiss, not Jade Balfour."

"That's what Dist calls you, though," Guy said, quietly. "And you two were childhood friends."

"Friends? Don't insult my taste in friends. The Balfour family honestly did less for me than the Curtiss house, but it's the only thing that still connects me to my sister."

"Nephry, huh."

"Yes…" Jade's glasses glinted in the sunlight. "Now, I see that look in your eye, and if you intend to make any moves on her…"

"No! Of course not!" Guy swallowed thickly. He would hate to get on Jade's protective-older-brother side. "She's married, after all." And the sister of the Necromancer. That was probably the primary reason.

"Still, talking about names," Jade continued as though nothing had happened. "You chose "Cecil" as your surname. Guy Cecil. After your mother's name."

"Well, yeah. It was to help me remember my past." Guy finished his breakfast and dusted his hands. "Despite all the hatred I had for Duke Fabre and everyone in that household, I knew that eventually I'd probably end up developing a soft spot for Luke. I mean, you don't just take care of a kid for most of his life and not have any bond with him."

"You took care of both Asch and Luke, did you not?"

"Yeah. Asch was a really brilliant kid. Well, he liked to read about history and talked about what he'd do when he grew up and became king and all. I was in my early teens then, and I mostly helped Pere out. But other than that I was Luke….Asch's companion. Of course," Guy sighed thoughtfully, "after the whole kidnapping thing I was about fourteen, so I became Luke's tutor. Did a pretty crappy job of it, I suppose."

"His rotten personality is hardly solely your fault," said Jade. "Or are you referring to Akzeriuth?" Guy pressed his lips together tightly. He'd thought about that a lot, although he'd never mentioned it to anyone. To think that everything had culminated to that end result of thousands of innocent miners and people dying, sinking into the liquefied surface of the Qliphoth or suffocating from the miasma. It was…unsettling.

"Well, we're here. Grand Chokmah's shopping district has quite a few tailors, but I'll take you to the one that the Curtiss family…my House prefers." Jade's voice sounded a little strange when using the personal pronoun with his adoptive family name, but Guy smiled at him.

"Sure, lead the way."

A bell in the distance rang twelve times, and there were few people on the streets. There were a few well-dressed ladies seated at a café, who started speaking behind gloved hands and glancing in their direction as they passed. One of them pressed a closed fan to her lips, batting heavily made-up eyelashes at Guy. Jade all but sniggered. "She's flirting with you, that one from House Simone. It's likely you'll see her tonight."

"Ugh, not my type. A little lacking in the chest area, if you know what I mean," he muttered with a charming grin directed to the women anyway.

"Well, few women can compete with the likes of Tear, and anyway sad to say her heart's with a certain absent-minded Kimlascan noble. Now, Anise, on the other hand, has some potential—"

"No, Jade. Just…no." Guy grimaced at the idea of dating a grown up Anise. He had trouble picturing Anise as an adult anyway. How would she fight with Tokunaga?!

They arrived at the tailor's, and Jade strode right in. An elderly woman looked up. "Jade Curtiss? Is that you? And my, who is that very attractive young man behind you?" Grey hair tied up neatly in a bun, wiry glasses perched on a long pointed nose, the small woman trotted over.

"Marianne, this is Gailardia Gardios, and he desperately needs an outfit for a formal event tonight. He'll also need some normal clothes for the rest of his life here."

"House….Gardios?" The words dropped from her lips almost reverently, and she stepped toward Guy. Guy stepped back instinctively, then forced his foot to return to its original position. "I haven't heard that name in…a long time."

"Yes, ma'am. But I guess we're back." He tried to give her a smile, but she seemed stunned by Guy's very existence.

"Back….yes. How I have waited this long…" She shook her head. "But yes! Grand dinner! The heir returns…you must be talking about the House of Lords gathering. My, all the ladies have been gossiping so much about you, Gailardia!"

She produced measuring tape from somewhere in her dress and began wrapping them around Guy's waist, much to his horror. Jade grabbed Guy's trembling gloved hand as he stood there like some bizarre statue, and Guy gripped Jade's hand back so tightly Jade murmured, "Please don't break my fingers, Guy, or the Emperor will make you his new personal secretary." Eventually Marianne was done, and Guy practically collapsed to the floor, if not for Jade's firm hand.

"The colours of House Gardios…" Marianne whisked to a huge shelf holding rolls and rolls of fabrics. She deftly pulled out two rolls of azure blue and another three green ones. Peering at them, she pulled out a large book. "Do you know which green it is?"

"He's rather…new," said Jade, and Guy shrugged apologetically. He'd have to educate himself on this, and soon, especially if he was to represent his family.

"No matter." Marianne flipped to a certain page, nodded, and shut it. "Azure blue to follow one of the oldest Malkuth families. A slightly dirty green to remember Gardios who was in charge of the many plantations of old." She shelved the book, then pulled out a few loose sheets of paper. "We could use a few of these usual designs, and I'll add some frills here or there to modify it." Jade pushed Guy over to the counter, and Guy selected a few designs he thought looked pretty nice.

"They're hard to choose from, really. They're all just so perfect," he said, grinning at Marianne. He heard Jade give a small cough behind him. Marianne laughed.

"Oh, such a charmer! Did you hear that, Colonel! Just like your father…"

"You knew my father?"

"Marianne served mostly with Count Gardios, actually," Jade murmured. Marianne sobered up at that, and made a few markings on the sketches.

"I'll be done in about an hour. I have a few other clothes on that rack over there you can pick up. They're new." She gathered up the bundles of cloth and disappeared behind deep blue curtains into a room at the back. Guy frowned at the curtain.

"Well now," Jade's voice came from behind one of the countless racks of clothes. "Which of these would you like?"

"Huh?" Guy walked over and pulled out one of the shirts. It had about three times as many frills as he thought necessary. To begin with, why did men's clothes even need ribbons?

"We can't have you running around in that gardener's outfit while you're representing the Gardios name here. Now pick something, otherwise Emperor Peony will spread rumours about how Jade Curtiss lacks fashion sense…or worse, that he has a fetish for young blonde men in work outfits." From the annoyed tone in Jade's voice, Guy assumed that Peony had enjoyed having his way with tarnishing Jade's reputation.

"But all of these are all so….flimsy." Another one he pulled out seemed to have tassels from the sleeves. Tassels?! Didn't those belong on curtains?

"Yes, which is why I agreed to join the Curtiss family. Being a military House I knew I wouldn't have to deal with this. Still," Jade pulled out about five outfits, and presented them to Guy. One was black and green, consisting of a sort of jacket over a long shirt with pants. "there are always a few somewhat less ribbony ones, if you know where to dig. Marianne usually keeps these for …my family, since we are rather sensible dressers."

Guy wondered if Jade had brothers, but decided not to press. He took another outfit from Jade's hands, which was mostly black and white with blue trimmings. He picked out another simple one which looked quite similar to his own outfit, without more fitting gloves. "Well, these two look alright." Jade nodded approvingly, showing him to the fitting room. Once in, Guy changed into them, each time showing Jade. Jade would pull and pluck, adjusting sleeves and folding collars, showing him how the Malkuth nobles dressed. Apparently while Kimlascans pulled up their collars or stiffened them with starch, the Malkuth nobles either buttoned up to the top properly or left them flat, or buttoned to the shirt itself. He felt rather strange having Jade inspect his clothes like that. Jade noticed his discomfort.

"Despite my long hair I'm certain, Guy, that you ought to know I'm completely male."

"It's not that! It's just…we were pretty much like the two adults of our little travelling gang, and now you're….being all father-like." Guy paused. That was quite right. While he himself was like a father to the newborn Luke, he didn't remember much of Count Gardios. Mary was his constant companion, and Eugenie did play a role in his upbringing, but he hadn't had much of a father figure in his life. "It's not unpleasant," he added.

Jade seemed at a loss for words, his fingers stopping momentarily at a button on Guy's sleeve. "That is….something I hadn't expected to hear from you. From Luke, it was a little less shocking…" He dropped his hands, and stepped back with a nod. "Right. That looks fine. Would that be anything else, sir?"

"Now you're just teasing me," said Guy with a grin. "These two should be enough for now." Guy turned to shut the curtain again, but Jade stopped him.

"Your usual clothes make you stick out like a sore thumb. Perhaps you should consider wearing that outfit for now," reasoned Jade, gesturing to Guy's white short jacket with black shirt and brown pants. Guy frowned—he wanted to at least wear his usual clothes for one more day.

"Then when would I ever get to wear that again?"

"Well, I suppose that would be the next time we have to save the world." Noting Guy's dismal expression, he sighed. "Or when we go visit any of the others again. You could just wear it in your own mansion."

That brightened Guy up again, and he folded up the vest neatly. Marianne reappeared about this time and all but gushed at Guy in his new clothes. Her earlier discomfort seemed to have disappeared, and she showed them the clothes she'd made. She shoved Guy into the changing room, and Jade helped Guy to gently pull the seamstress out before she eagerly attempted to undress Guy. When he re-emerged in his formal wear, Marianne squealed with delight.

"This—this outfit! Gailardia, would you please model for my clothes? You're an absolute piece of art!" She seemed so excited, Guy was worried she'd suddenly collapse.

"Marianne, Guy here is a noble. Which means you can only have him when Emperor Peony has no need for him." Guy shot a glare at Jade. Did he not get a say in this? Well, he should have known better, seeing how Peony treated Jade.

"Yes, of course. But…" she seemed speechless, and her eyes were fixed on Guy throughout the time they paid and left the store. She waved enthusiastically, which was almost amusing considering her age. What was she, seventy?

They stopped at the bar, much to Guy's horror, until Jade assured him that they wouldn't be touching any more alcohol until perhaps that night. In the day, it seemed, the place was a normal family restaurant with rather decent food. The waitress waltzed over, and Jade ordered. "I'll have my usual, and so will this gentleman here."

The usual turned out to be curry, which was a much more flavourful version of the one Luke made. He vaguely recalled their recipe book, and the one for curry had been stuck in by Jade when he thought no one was looking. Guy smirked behind his spoon when he realised this, and Jade raised an eyebrow.

After that they'd picked up a pair of leather boots from the Shopping Centre. Jade had also ordered an additional pair of beastfur boots to be delivered to Guy's house.

"How much is this all going to cost me?" asked Guy. Jade chewed on his lip, and Guy decided to believe that his inherited fortune would not be dented by a mere shopping trip.

By the time they were done it was about four in the afternoon. "Just wash up and get ready, and I'll drop by after I'm done." Jade had gone into the gigantic compound that was the Curtiss mansion, and Guy watched as he entered. The mansion seemed so quiet and dark, but the rest of the Curtiss family must have had been inside. He shook his head to clear his mind and headed back to his own mansion. Cyril met him at the door.

"How was the trip with the Colonel, sir?"

"Productive, I presume. I guess I'm going to take a bath now."

"Very well. I'll have your clothes laid out for you."

When Jade arrived, Guy was walking down the steps while tugging at his jacket. Guy looked up, pushing still wet hair out of his eyes, and Jade seemed rather stunned, starring at him. Feeling self-conscious, he asked, "W-what? I'm sure my collar's down." Just to be sure, he ran a hand over it.

"N-no. It's just….astounding what a change of clothes can do to a man." At this, Guy noticed Jade's clothes. A smart, simple cobalt blue jacket over a black shirt and pants, with knee high brown leather boots. It suited him well.

"I agree, but it seems you just look nice in everything," said Guy, grinning.

"Oh, Gailardia, flattery will get you nowhere," said Jade, but he couldn't help but give a small smile. "Well, shall we be going?"

"I suppose…" Guy scrunched up his nose, and Jade laughed as he looped an arm around Guy's and steered him toward the door.

Guy was normally sociable enough to make friends with just about anybody, but with all the societal conventions that nobles seemed to have he was actually _struggling._

They'd arrived at the palace on time, and the reception at the main hall consisted of many men with women at their sides looking all neat and fancy sipping cocktails from very delicate glassware. Jade had taken the trouble to introduce Guy to whoever took initiative to speak to the newcomer. The House of Lords dinner was a yearly event with the exception that this year would have the additional inauguration of a new member, and quite a few people were excited to meet this new person. Once the news spread that it was a member of House Gardios, Guy was virtually the centre of attraction.

When the sixth or so Count of what's-his-name's House had tried to introduce Guy to his third or later daughter, Jade was suddenly approached by a man with neatly combed back hair. He muttered something that Guy couldn't hear, and somehow pulled Jade away from Guy and into the crowd. Guy couldn't ignore the noble and run after Jade, but fortunately at that moment Peony called for attention.

"Welcome all to the annual meeting of the House of Lords! If everyone would please enter the main ballroom, we will start with the inauguration ceremony of Gailardia Galan Gardios!"

Guy hid a wince as everyone turned to look at him. He looked around for Jade, and saw him standing at the side with a few other people in similar clothes. "Are those the other members of House Curtiss?" The only other male of the group glared at him, and though Guy wasn't intimidated in the least he turned toward the direction of the ballroom. Peony appeared by his side.

"Ready to join the circle of overdressed men, Gailardia?"

"You mean the House of Lords, your Majesty? Ready as I'll ever be."

"Good. Don't worry about Jade. He'll handle it," Peony said, glancing at the Curtiss family. Guy smiled, and walked in.

The ceremony itself involved the representatives and heirs of each House greeting the new member, followed by Guy swearing fealty to the Emperor. He shook hands and exchanged well-wishes and greetings with the Houses of Simone (where the fan-lady winked at him from the crowd), Jeralt, Safire and lastly Curtiss. A tall regal looking man with hair as black as night greeted Guy with a handshake strong enough to numb his fingers. Jade muttered something that sounded very formal and serious, which seemed strange since they'd spent the whole day together. Guy smiled politely at them all the same, and lastly he knelt at Peony's feet and kissed his ring.

And then there came the dinner and dance.

Guy went to sit beside Jade, which Peony had apparently arranged (Guy made a mental note to thank him later). Jade was seated with Duke Curtiss, who was also the man Guy had met earlier. Jade had apparently told the Duke in brief of the adventures they'd been having, and the Duke seemed interested in meeting these other members of the party responsible for dropping all of the Outer Lands into the Qliphoth. Guy had happily pushed the conversation by explaining how the whole thing had worked, gushing on about his fascination with the machinery left behind by the Dawn Age.

"So you're into fon machinery," inquired the Duke. Guy laughed and confirmed this, but to his surprise Jade seemed very stiff throughout the conversation. He'd expected him to make some snide comment about Guy's creepy obsession or whatnot, but he'd been almost completely silent.

Between courses Peony would call up random nobles to perform something or another, and most of the ladies would play some instrument. Of course, right before dessert Peony invited Jade to come up. The whole room fell silent, followed by some cheering by a few of the younger members of the audience. Guy wondered if this was something new.

Jade stood up, and gave Guy a look. Guy blinked, wondering why, and stood to follow Jade. Duke Curtiss frowned, but didn't say anything.

Jade went up on the small stage, and cleared his throat. "Good evening, all. I would first like to thank our gracious host, Emperor Peony Malkuth the Ninth, for providing such a lovely dinner…"

Peony glared at Jade for his tone. Jade sounded like he'd been served some terrible food, and Guy forced himself not to laugh at their childishness.

"…and now for the final act of tonight, and in honour of our latest addition to the House of Lords, I will be showing you all a new spell I've devised." He turned to face Guy, and touched his right hand to his left forearm. He pulled out the spear fonons from those in his arm, drawing out applause from the audience. Guy looked at Jade uncertainly.

"What are you going to do?" he muttered worriedly.

"Trust me on this, Gailardia." He tapped Guy on the shoulder, and fonons seemed to dance around him. Guy didn't move, looking straight at Jade. Jade smirked, and then as a field of fonons gathered around him, Guy felt a strange tingling sensation….

….and found himself at the other end of the ballroom, next to a table with another bunch of nobles. They turned in shock and one girl gave a small shout, alerting all the audience to his location. Jade nodded approvingly.

"And thus I have replicated the effect of a teleporter using a combination of the Second and Sixth Fonons." Jade walked down the stage, while the audience stood and gave him a standing ovation. Guy was amazed at the spell, and walked over. At that moment, however, he noticed the Duke nodding approvingly at Jade, saying something to the Colonel as he sat down again. But for some reason Jade didn't bother smiling back.

After dessert Guy deflected all attempts by girls to dance with him, pleading exhaustion from Jade's spell. Jade stood up, muttered something about being tired as well in his old age (despite half the audience being twice his age) and left the table with long strides. Guy hurried after him, and once they'd left the ballroom, Jade sighed.

"Jade….why did you do that back there? With the spell and all? You could have warned me first!"

Jade looked at him tiredly. "It's a precaution. Grand Chokmah isn't safe for the returning remnant of House Gardios. If anything happens….I'm going to take you away from here, and everyone will know that I did it."

"But then you'd get in trouble." Guy folded his arms. "I know about how I'd be an easy target, but I can protect myself. You don't have to trouble yourself…"

"Oh? If you say so. For now," Jade stetched his arms. "I'm about ready to collapse into bed."

"Won't your….Duke Curtiss find it strange you left before him, and question you once he gets back too?"

"Who said anything about me going home? Your couch, if I recall, has quite a lot of room."

Guy stared at him incredulously, then sighed. "As long as you don't get me drunk on alcohol and bad storytelling."


	3. Chapter 3

Jade was apparently a lot busier than he appeared to be when he'd been travelling with them. It really did seem like Peony was a slave-driver, mostly because he was too lazy to assign the work to the proper departments, and Jade was trustworthy anyway. Jade managed the military training schedules as well as formal complaints sent to the palace, issues and reports of activities from other Malkuth-owned territories and, Guy suspected, Peony's laundry.

Which left Guy alone to wander the fortress city alone.

They'd visited the place enough, and he'd "read up on popular vacation spots" enough. Naturally there wasn't as much information on his home country available in Baticul's libraries, and he hadn't that much of an excuse to enter the palace even though it was right next door. Luke's education had hardly covered Kimlasca's geography so it seemed a stretch to keep requesting entry in.

He ran his fingers across the spines of the books in Peony's study. The guards had just let him through, although it might have been his new clothes. The palace of Grand Chokmah was a popular tourist location, known for its architecture. At this time though, there weren't many tourists. Guy tried not to feel out of place, though he really suspected the study wasn't meant to be open to the public.

He found a recently compiled book on the noble houses, and pulled it out. Pere had told him about his family's history, and he knew the past of the Gardios family enough. What he wanted to know was the history of everyone else's. Guy ran a gloved finger down the contents page—Abelard, Angose…it was in alphabetical order, but most of them were minor houses. In the history of Malkuth there were always four main Houses, which were the Jeralt, Simone, Safire and Curtiss Houses at that moment. The powers changed amongst them depending on size and annual contribution to the kingdom…and its treasury, so it seemed.

Guy smiled mirthlessly. The last time Gardios had stood tall was before the destruction of Hod. He was the remnant of it, and that was all.

"Until I can get over my silly phobia and start a family of course." He shook his head at that, and closed the book. Looking around, he wondered how he was going to borrow that book.

Suddenly the glass of the window shattered. Guy's head snapped in that direction, and at that moment the door burst open. Guy reached by his belt for his sword before he realised it wasn't there, something heavy barrelled into him, and there was a loud sound and he felt himself shoved against something. Guy completely lost track of everything that happened at that point, because there was just lots of noise and pain in some places and the smell of dust and something burning…

…then there was Jade, shaking him by the shoulders with his hair looking not as perfect as it usually was, and his lips were moving.

"….ardia! Can you hear me? Are you alright?"

"J-Jade? Ugh…did you just tackle me?" Jade released Guy, his expression still looking somewhat perturbed. Guy clutched at his head, and straightened his back. Ah, he had knocked against the table, and the books had fallen on his head.

"Well, it was that, or you would have been killed," said Jade solemnly. Soldiers were entering the room, which was now mostly a blackened mess, and Jade turned around to chase them all out. "Men, inspect the perimeter. The perpetrator might still be around. He can't have gotten far. Leave this place to me. You there, send for the physician to the spare room downstairs."

Guy looked around in a daze. The bookshelf was half blown to pieces, and there were piles of books on the floor, some still smouldering with embers. Blackened bits of ash fluttered about the room from the wind that came in through the window. The carpet where what he'd thought was a brick that got thrown in was completely burnt away.

"Fonon bomb, First Fonon type V. These are quite rare…" Jade inspected the patch, then stood up to walk to the window. "It was attached to…something else…this stain on the window…" Guy could hear soldiers shouting to each other from there.

"How did you know I was…" Guy started, but his head was spinning. Jade walked over and pulled out the chair by the table.

"Sit, Guy. Type V bombs have a modified chemical composition which can cause nausea if the smoke produced is inhaled. I happened to be looking for His Majesty, that's all."

Guy squinted at Jade, gripping the armrest of the chair tightly. There was something wrong about that statement, but he couldn't quite put his finger on it then. Jade bent down and picked up the book at Guy's foot. "'History of Malkuth's Houses'? Doing your research on your potential social circle?"

Guy smiled faintly. Jade raised and eyebrow, then put the book on the table. "We need to get you to the physician. I'm quite familiar with what weapons our military has, but usually I _watch_ the weapon being used and _then_ monitor its effects. And never has it happened at such close quarters." He offered his shoulder as Guy struggled to get up, and sighed as they hobbled out of the study. "Putting such a strain on an old man…I hope you're happy, young Gailardia."

"The strain's not on your heart, I'm sure…" Guy muttered. "You're hiding something."

"Hmm," replied Jade noncommittally, pretending he hadn't heard. They'd nearly reached the bottom of the stairs when Guy's eyelids slid shut, and Jade shouted something right next to his ear but the darkness engulfed him like it did all those years ago at Hod.

Guy heard voices around him, and his twitched a finger. His gloves had been taken off, and he felt the warm covering of woollen blanket and satin sheets about his hands.

"…shock, but…mind….rare chemical….Rugnican…"

"…Doctor…." That must have been Jade's voice, Guy guessed. "Thank you." There was a click, and the sound of something turning in the lock.

"You have your suspicions, of course." That was the Emperor's voice. The Emperor had come to visit him? He doubted it. Guy wondered if Jade had already figured his act out, but Guy decided to wait it out anyway.

"…I can't confirm anything yet."

"But?"

"But….naturally I have my suspicions."

"You didn't have any reason to be in the palace at the time that the bomb went off. You definitely did."

So Jade had lied after all. Not that it was a surprise, but still.

"Peony, I can't make any wild accusations here."

"Dude, they just blew up my _house_, although it's just the study."

"Lorelei and Yulia both know you certainly don't spend much time there…"

"Jade! My books! My writing materials! My _books! _The ones with the pretty ladies and gorgeous—"

"Your _Majesty_, as much as we're alone in this room may I warn you that walls have ears…"

Peony sighed. "You won't tell me?"

"I will….when I have confirmed my suspicions. Naturally you knew this was coming. We'd talked about this."

"Yes….poor Gailardia. He doesn't deserve to have to deal with all this, not after everything that's happened."

"The nobility have always been somewhat…dramatic. Since the poisoning of Letitia Simone, and you recall the thing with Nephry—"

"Can we not."

"My apologies, Peony."

There was a long pause, before someone cleared his throat gently. "Jade….does this….have something to do with Count Curtiss?"

There was an even longer pause now, and Guy could just imagine Jade shrugging. He somehow felt like this had gone long enough, and turned his head, groaning slightly and opening his eyes.

"Gailardia!" Peony said, rushing over to him. "Are you alright?"

"Y-your Majesty!" Guy said, putting on what he hoped was his look of surprise. "You needn't be here on my account!" He tried to sit up, and to his surprise his head wasn't swimming. "Wow, I feel pretty alright now."

"Yes, the doctor was quite proficient, but do you feel any pain anywhere, or any discomfort…" Jade walked over, almost shoving the Emperor out of the way.

"N-no."

"Then good, you're discharged. Go home and rest. There's plenty of work to do." Jade all but shoved Peony out of the room, and Guy was left alone in the guest room.

The next few days saw Guy being kept busy at the palace. Peony had expressed worry about Guy's safety despite Jade refusing to admit to what he suspected, and decided that he'd ought to hang around the palace where there were plenty of guards. Guy, on the other hand, decided he ought to take precautions, and started carrying his sword with him. He also started wearing his old clothes, despite Cyril's complaints.

Guy absent-mindedly scratched behind Jade's ears. The rappig snorted and continued sniffing about. Luke was wandering around, and Nephry seemed to be intent on digging out every flower in the garden. Guy sighed, pushing himself up from the ground, and tried to pull the rappig out of the flower bed. Nephry, unlike her namesake, was very stubborn and rather annoying, refusing to budge.

"Keeping me safe? I'm more than capable of taking care of myself. Looks like I'm destined to stay a servant forever," muttered Guy to an unsympathetic Luke.

"Oink," Nephry snorted.

Guy took the rappigs back to the palace from the gardens, gripping their leashes tightly and trying not to trip over any of them as they sniffed and nosed about his feet. Some people on the streets stared at them, and some whispered. He caught the words "Gardios" and "rappigs" and "what in Eldrant?!", which served to show him that he'd secured quite the reputation, possibly after the party. Rumours were sure to spread, after they'd made such an unorthodox exit. He was surprised that they'd still recognise him though, since he wasn't wearing anything classy.

One of the rappigs (which Guy suspected to be Aslan) wandered over to a woman, who Guy hadn't noticed standing by the railings looking out at the sea until she bent over and started scratching behind Aslan's ears. Guy tugged at what he hoped was Aslan's leash (he could think of so many bad jokes regarding Frings and Cecille at this point). "Hey, get back here!"

The woman opened her black lace fan to cover part of her face. "Are these darling little things yours?"

Guy noted her dress—cobalt blue with black lace. A noble woman. "Er, not really, no. I'm just taking care of them." He wondered how many Malkuthians knew about the Emperor's hobbies.

"I see…Count Gardios." The fan snapped shut.

"You must be mistaken," said Guy, giving her his nicest smile. "I'm—"

She took a step closer, and he tried not to flinch. "I think not," tapping the tip of her fan to a barely healed scar from the explosion on his face. She strode away, nearly brushing past him, and Guy leapt back, almost tripping over Luke.

"What was that all about…," Guy muttered. Everyone around in Malkuth was so strange.

Guy rubbed his palms together, grinning at the challenge before him. Luke's manor was only one storeyed, so this was his first time doing anything like this. He put one booted foot on the ledge of the low ledge of the window. He reached up to grab the small ledge running along the top of the window, and pulled himself up. Guy managed to reach the small balcony he was aiming for, although there was hardly any room to stand. He balanced on the railing, pressing lightly against the wall to keep his balance. He squinted through the glass of the second floor window, and nearly fell off the ledge.

"What's Jade doing talking to that weird woman from earlier today?" Guy had dropped the rappigs off at Peony's palace before sneaking his way over to the military headquarters. He'd finished the book on noble houses, but hadn't quite the courage to return to the library to return it. Guy had been hoping that Jade's office held some books (hopefully some on fontech), and anyway he could have done with some company. Although it seemed Jade had company of his own. Guy shifted over to the corner of the railing to prevent himself from being heard, and leaned his head toward the glass as much as he could without losing his balance.

"...my brother, such a pitiable creature."

"I understand your concern, Lucia, but this is my own affair." Jade's voice sounded unusually tense.

There was a pause, and then a small chuckle. "You always end up with this sort of problem. When you were first adopted everyone gossiped about that creepy child….Saphir, was it? Then it became His Majesty. Always so popular with the other _men_ of Malkuth…"

"I do not see the point of discussing such foolish gossip."

"…and now the former _dog_ of that trash Fabre, with Kimlasca." The word _Kimlasca_ was said with such disgust Guy felt annoyed, even if he had his grievances with Duke Fabre. It hurt to think that they'd worked so hard for Malkuth and Kimlasca to have that peace treaty, and yet it was still going to take so much more time to fix people's hearts.

"Gailardia is not what you say he is."

"Oh, so protective now, aren't you? Fine, I leave you to do what you want, but do not disgrace us. The Curtiss family is stained by the shadow of the Necromancer, and the last thing Father wants is a scandal about your…._abnormal _relations…"

"The door is this way, dear _sister_." Guy heard the sound of the door opening, and after a while it slammed shut rather loudly. Guy wondered whether he could jump from this height without getting hurt, when he heard a click beside him and the window opened. Jade's head poked out, calm as always.

"Coming in?"

"Well, hey there Jade! What an unexpected surprise!"

"It'll be an unexpected surprise for the one who cleans my office to find bootprints on this railing here," said Jade, turning away from the window. Guy grinned and slid into the office, shutting the window behind him.

"I wiped my boots before climbing." Guy coughed lightly. "Was I…interrupting anything?"

"Well, you disrupted my attention when I was dealing with my adoptive sister. It was very amusing to see you scrabble about my balcony ledge that I almost had difficulty keeping a straight face," Jade said in a manner suggesting that he hadn't had that problem at all.

"Adoptive sister, huh? So I was right."

"You've seen her before?"

"Met her this morning, when Aslan drooled over her shoes." At Jade's raised eyebrow, Guy corrected himself. "I mean the Emperor's rappig, not General Frings."

"Ah."

"It was almost like she was expecting me."

Jade crossed over to his desk, taking his place in the armchair, sighing. "She probably was." Taking a folder out of his drawer, he continued. "Lucia Curtiss, the third child of Count Curtiss. She serves in the military in the intelligence unit."

"Don't you handle that department too?"

"Not exactly. She deals with a small group dealing with internal intelligence, ploys specifically against Emperor Peony or the governance of Malkuth as a whole. Politics, instead of security against Kimlasca or any other nation." He opened the folder, and sighed again.

"I know you were the oldest amongst us, but you're way too young to be sighing that much. You think she's up to something."

Jade looked up, and frowned. "I…suspect that she was the one who targeted you at the incident in the library."

Guy's eyes widened. "That lady? Uh, I mean…your sister."

"Guy, my only sister is Nephry. Feel free to address Lucia Curtiss in any way you like."

Guy bit his lip. Jade sure had family problems. "R-right. But I think they'd have noticed a woman running around the palace, unless she disguised herself as a guard or something…"

"Like I said, she could have easily gotten one of her men to do it, but I suspect her to be the mastermind."

"But why would she do something like that?"

Jade gave him a small smile. "Think, Gailardia. You heard enough outside."

Guy looked around for somewhere to sit, which there wasn't. He settled for leaning against the wall. "Scandals. That thing all nobles fear." Then he remembered the rest of the conversation, and flushed. "They think you and…me…." He shook his head furiously. "Hey, I know I've got my fear and everything, but I am _totally_ into women. I love them! Really! Unless they try to kill me, of course."

"Yes, unfortunately news of your gynophobia may have spread, and it would seem I'm your only acquaintance at the moment." Jade laced his fingers together and rested his chin against it. "And even worse is that I haven't actually had a history of many loves."

"…wait, what?" Guy hid a smile behind a gloved hand. "Really?"

"Unless you count my research as a love, I haven't actually dated any women. Hence," Jade's face darkened, "the rumours flying about that I am Emperor Peony's most trusted advisor, friend, confidant, and warmer of his bed in the night." Guy couldn't help but snigger at this point, until Jade shot him a glare. "You realise they think you're the one who shares my bed now." That got Guy quiet.

"But, that doesn't really make sense. If Lucia wants to take me out of the picture, that still leaves the Emperor. And I'm kind of the Emperor's friend, right? I mean, all of us in the 'saving the world' gang are."

Jade closed his eyes. "They just don't want another scandal breaking out. The ones about the Emperor and I are mostly stifled, since His Majesty has been a very good Emperor so far and most people in Malkuth are full of praise for him."

"Ugh." Guy covered his face with his hands. "It's like some kind of weird love triangle, except there's only two of us and there's nothing between us." He stopped, then put down his hands. "Wait. I have an idea. Why don't we just get you a girlfriend?"

"…." Jade looked so incredulous, that he couldn't even be bothered to dignify that suggestion with a response.

"Hey, it'll work. You need a break, Emperor Peony will definitely agree to it once he hears that it's about your romantic life, and the rumours will probably stop!"

Jade kept the folder back into his drawer with a heavy sigh. "I don't even know where to begin pointing out the issues with this plan."

Guy walked over to the desk, and leaned toward Jade. "Okay, I get it. I can keep a secret. There's really something between you and the Emperor, isn't there."

"Guy, do you really want me to burn down your mansion in the middle of the night? Because I can do that, and get away with it."

"That's not a no, Jade."

"…no, there isn't anything between us—"

"Then it's settled!" Guy straightened, grinning and feeling much better. "You realise you don't even have to actually date a girl. We could just pretend that someone's your date!"

"I am beginning to regret my decision of taking the effort to capture Luke at Engeve at this point," muttered Jade, glaring at his desk.

"…you have got to be kidding me." Jade's fingers pulled at his right sleeve, fonons flying out from the fabric like little sparks as he resisted the urge to pull out the spear from his arm.

Guy had made a reservation at a rather classy restaurant in the nobles' district the next night. He'd sent carrier pigeons to most of the females he knew, but Tear hadn't managed to respond in time, Natalia replied with an indignant but dignified refusal, and Noelle said she could only come down in about two weeks due to everyone working on the Albiores. Jade had mildly remarked that he was going to conveniently forget about the plan soon with all the work he'd been given, and Guy was beginning to become rather paranoid about anyone who seemed to even glance at him twice.

"Well, I don't like this plan any more than you do," Guy said behind a green laced fan. Jade cringed.

"Please don't…just don't even talk." He shoved his glasses up the bridge of his nose. "At the very least you're not wearing make-up."

"Er…" Cyril had actually insisted on a light coating of powder on his cheeks, but if Jade couldn't tell, that was just as well. Guy flicked his newly gained long black hair (a wig he'd gotten Cyril to pick up) over his shoulder as the wind blew his long black skirts about. "Believe me when I say this is just as awkward for me as it is for you," he said with his normal voice.

"I believe the plan was for a female to be seen in public with me so rumours of my sexuality would cease," Jade said. The waiter opened the door, and inquired if they had a reservation. Guy nudged Jade with his elbow, hiding his face behind the fan. Jade rolled his eyes at him, then put on his gentle smile he reserved for public appearances. "Yes, we have a reservation, under the name Curtiss."

"Ah, yes. Right this way, Colonel." The waiter held the door open for Jade and his alleged date Guy into the restaurant. Guy tried not to stare too much. It was very elegantly designed, with chandeliers and drapes, fountains and a performing band at the back. He hadn't seen many of these places, since Luke wasn't allowed out of the manor and when he was living in Hod he was too young to be taken to classy eating places.

They took their seats at a discreet corner, and the waiter lit a candle with a smile at Guy. Guy wondered if it was etiquette to keep the fan when he was seated, and cursed his lack of planning. Why did silly Malkuth women have to carry fans about? He closed it anyway and tucked it into his sleeve, hoping that the wig covered his mostly masculine jawbone. The waiter asked for their drink orders first, and Jade quickly ordered a bottle of wine. When the waiter left, he muttered, "I am going to need more than just a glass to get through this."

"Oh Jade, you should watch your health," said Guy in a high pitch, batting eyelids at him. Jade's face remained remarkably unchanged.

"Well, my darling, I shall keep that in mind," he said with a smile that sent chills down Guy's back. Jade put a hand over Guy's, and Guy shot a look at him. Jade's eyes replied with something along the lines of _you started this_, and Guy had an urge to stab Jade's hand with the steak knife on the table.

The wine arrived and was poured out. Jade thanked the waiter with a smile, and the waiter seemed to take a second glance at his date. Guy hoped that meant that rumours would soon be spreading like wildfire about the Colonel.

The night was going well, as far as the plan was concerned. The only problem was that Guy hardly spoke at all, since his imitation of a girl's voice was enough to send himself retching internally (and from Jade's expression, it seemed he was just as affected). Still, the food was divine, and it was still relatively simple to smile and laugh at Jade's formal attempts at conversation. Guy began to feel somewhat less awkward, even if he knew Jade would quite possibly keep his promise of burning down the Gardios manor after the dinner.

That was, until another explosion went off right next to the restaurant, blowing up a large portion of the wall of the restaurant and sending Jade and Guy and a few other patrons flying across half the floor of the room.


	4. Chapter 4

The wall was blown apart, and dust clouds were everywhere. Someone screamed, and Guy clutched at his head. The door slammed open, and an armed man burst in. Somewhere, he heard Jade's voice shouting at people to calm down. Guy stood up, opening his fan and waving the smoke away. Squinting through the dark, he fumbled his way to the door. Picking up a chair, he smashed it over one of the men's heads, knocking him down. He rushed toward the doors and opened them wide. "Everyone, please evacuate quickly and calmly!" he said, abandoning all attempts at keeping up with his role as Jade's female date. People brushed past him, rushing out through the door. Just as the last person stumbled out, a large arrow flew into the wall behind Guy, missing his ear by millimetres.

"Damnit, I didn't think I'd be needing a sword for _this_ little adventure." Guy crouched down and tried to crawl toward a table, but tripped over his own skirts. Cursing, he gathered them up roughly and clutched it under one arm. He'd happily tear it to pieces, but he figured Marianne wouldn't appreciate it.

He heard the sound of more arrows flying into the restaurant. "Jade?" he shouted, a little worried. Someone grabbed him by the back of his collar and hauled out of the restaurant. He twisted and brandished his fan at his assailant. Jade raised an eyebrow.

"Oh, it's just you."

"Yes, it is just me. And what did you think you were going to do with that?" Guy looked at the fan in his hand, and grinned sheepishly. Jade shook his head.

"Let's get out of here first. It seems there were more of them, and they're probably still around."

"What, you think they were there for us? But how would they know that we were—" Guy was cut off as a man charged toward them. He raised the fan and hit him on the side of his head, before jumping and sending him flying with a roundhouse kick. Most of the customers had fled, and there were quite a few people Guy guessed must be from the military. He saw three or so archers dressed in black clothes with masks, and a few carrying daggers.

"There are too many of them for us to tackle!" Guy hissed, as he fended off another one with a solid punch to the face and a closed fan to the eye. Jade's fonic arte blasted another one unconscious, then quickly motioned for Guy to follow him into a small alley beside the restaurant. As they ran, Guy thought he saw a certain person, but he couldn't be sure. When they reached the alley, Guy tried to ask Jade if he'd seen the same person, but Jade held up a hand for silence, turning quickly toward the street. He motioned for Guy to move further back, while Jade leaned against the wall, blending with the shadows. Someone stood at the front of the alley.

"Is anyone there?" shouted a man with a rough voice. He walked further into the alley, and Guy wondered how hard he'd have to hit someone with the back of a wooden fan to knock them out. He looked at Jade, wondering how Jade would be able to draw his spear or cast a fonic arte without alerting the man to their presence. Just then, there was a sound of metal against bone as the man cried out, before keeling over. A familiar person stood behind him, holding her sword.

"General Cecille?" Jade said, walking forward. Cecille looked up with surprise.

"Colonel Jade Curtiss! Why are you here?"

"I could ask you the same thing. Why is a Kimlascan general here in Malkuth? General Frings…"

Cecille flushed slightly. "N-no, I am here on official military business. My team has been tracking down a group of terrorists who oppose the lowering of the Outer Lands into the Qliphoth." She wiped her sword on the cloak of the fallen man, before sheathing it. "But this is hardly the best place to discuss this. I'll explain things to you later, since it does actually involve you."

"Yeah, maybe we could all stop by my place later," said Guy as he stepped forward.

Cecille squinted at him. "That voice….is that you, Gailardia? Why are you—" She put a hand over her mouth, and looked at Jade, before looking at Guy again. "Uh…well. I-I need to get back to securing the perimeter. I'll look for you later at the Gardios' manor, then?" She turned and walked out of the alley quickly without waiting for a reply, and Jade slowly covered his face with his hand.

Guy cursed as he tripped over his skirt while trying to backstep from an attack. The man raised his sword, but Jade leapt in front of him and disarmed the man with his spear, before knocking him out with the back end of his spear.

"Thanks Jade," said Guy, pushing himself up. "Heh, I gotta figure out how Tear and Natalia manage to fight in dresses."

"For starters, they don't wear ten or so layers of silk to the ankle," Jade said, smiling slightly. He ducked as another man rushed toward them, and moved back to prepare for another fonic arte. Guy tossed his now-broken fan to the side and punched the man across the face. The man managed to dodge, and was about to counter when suddenly a dagger flew into his neck and he collapsed to the floor instantly. Jade stopped casting when he saw who it was.

"Lucia."

"Brother," she inclined her head. She wore an outfit that looked similar to Jade's usual uniform, but hers had black stripes instead of yellow. Guy felt the hair on the back of his neck stand on end, and he touched his wig self-consciously. Perhaps he should have worn make-up after all. Lucia turned to look at Guy, and he kept a blank expression.

Jade stepped toward Guy and put an arm around him. "This is …Valencia. She's from Kimlasca. Our date was interrupted by the attack on the restaurant. Do you know what's going on?"

Lucia looked genuinely surprised, then bowed to Guy. "My apologies for this unfortunate turn of events, madam." She turned to Jade. "We're working with the Kimlascan troops, pursuing a group of terrorists. The Kimlascan military only arrived this evening, but we anticipated this attack ever since my intelligence agents noticed an unnaturally large shipment of weaponry to civilian shops." She turned to Guy again, and looked concerned. "Should I escort this young lady…"

"No, she'll be fine. We were about to get going anyway. Can we trust your division to this?" Jade said, quickly.

"We may be small, but we're more than proficient and you know that, Jade." Lucia glared at him. "You two should leave first." She drew her sword and turned to return to the battlefield.

Guy blinked. "Wow, I can't believe she didn't see through my disguise."

"Yes, you make a lovely woman, Guy," said Jade lightly, squeezing Guy's shoulder before dropping his hand from around him.

"Argh, I'm going to just bring knuckle dusters around with me now," whined Guy, nursing his bruised knuckles. Cyril tutted as he opened a bottle of medicine for Guy, who was now back to wearing pants. Jade had escaped serious injury, other than a small scratch on his arm. Cecille looked very uncomfortable sitting there, glancing at her knees even though Jade was talking to her.

"So these men are angry with the lowering of the Outer Lands into the Qliphoth, so they're pursuing us who caused it?"

"Yes. They tried to attack the palace for Princess Natalia, although that was much easier to handle. Most Kimlascans are fond of the Princess, so it was less of an issue there. They tried to attack the Fabre family's mansion, but it was guarded quite heavily." She sighed, crossing her legs. "Fortunately no one's tried an attack on Daath yet."

"How were they organised? They are from all parts of the world, I assume," Guy said, before wincing as Cyril's medicine stung the wounds on his hand.

"Well, it would appear that it occurred mostly in Kimlasca, and a large group of them came here to spread the chaos. That's why we pursued them, although now that they're here we should rightfully leave it to the Malkuth military. Technically, I came to warn Malkuth, but it just so happened that we were there…"

"You've told His Majesty, then?" Jade asked. Cecille nodded curtly.

"Commander Lucia Curtiss assures me that the situation will be controlled."

Jade and Guy exchanged looks. "That's great then," said Guy.

"I suppose," muttered Jade. He stood up. "Thank you, General Cecille, for your assistance tonight. I shall retire now." He formally bade farewell to the both of them, and left.

"Hey Jozette, have you got a place to stay? I expect I could put you up for your stay here in Malkuth," inquired Guy, inspecting the bandages on his hand. It should heal quickly enough.

"W-well, my men are staying in the barracks with the Malkuth military…" Her face had turned a shade of red close to the colour of her uniform.

"Uh, why are you blushing?"

"I-I hadn't intended to interrupt you and….Colonel Curtiss."

Guy blinked at her, before laughing. "Wait, what? No, it's not…we're not like that." He stopped. "That's going to be really hard to believe since you saw me in a dress, huh."

"Gailardia, I want you to know that I'll respect your decisions, since you are a relative and you've helped me so much…"

"Jozette! Really! We were just…pretending! Because Lucia…I mean, Commander Lucia….we thought she…." He stopped. They'd decided to go on this date because they'd thought Lucia was targeting them, and now it turned out that it hadn't been her. He looked at Cecille's confused expression.

"…let's just say it was due to a really bad case of miscommunication, and I still love women, alright?"

Cecille left the next morning, and Guy went to see her off. He hadn't seen Jade, and he probably wouldn't have wanted to bother with saying goodbye.

"Be sure to stay safe, Gailardia," she said for the umpteenth time that day, and Guy grinned.

"Of course. I gotta show up at your wedding, and no terrorist is gonna stop me from doing that."

Cecille smiled. "Yes, you'd better come."

He went to pay a visit the palace to see if he could help with the investigations. After all, being part of the team that lowered the Outer Lands, perhaps he could help explain anything. The guard in front of the palace informed him that Jade was interrogating some prisoners in the military headquarters. Guy thanked him for his time, then went to look for Jade. It was easy enough—he just had to follow the blood-curdling screams. A guard at the door seemed to be trembling from hearing it, and hardly noticed as Guy let himself into the dungeon.

"Give us back our lives! We just want to go home!" roared a man, before he let out another horrible sound. Jade stood there, looking unperturbed as always, although a field of fonons surrounded him.

"I told you, we cannot do such a thing. This was the only option. Now, where are the rest of your troops?"

"We'll never tell you! We'll….we'll force you all to bring us back!"

"Fools," sighed Jade, and the man gave one final cry before falling silent. The field of fonons vanished, and Jade turned to look at Guy. "So far I've only gotten information about the fact that there are still terror groups out there. These men are pretty stubborn."

"Aren't we all, when our knowledge about the world is so limited," said Guy, sighing as he looked at the bloodied body of the man Jade had interrogated. "Is he dead?"

"No, but he's close." Jade folded his arms. "Lucia's team is following a lead that one of the men revealed, so I guess we can take it easy for now."

"Heh, and to think we thought Lucia was the one who'd done this." Guy scratched his head. "Compared to what we're actually dealing with, it seems really silly."

"Well, at least there's one less thing to worry about." Jade smiled, lowering his voice. "Count Curtiss actually congratulated me last night when I went back."

"Word travels quickly," Guy said, nodding.

"Especially when we make _such_ an adorable couple together."

"Please shut up, Jade."

Jade was still swamped with paperwork that Peony threw at him relentlessly. Considering the recent events, Guy realised he felt safer hanging around familiar company, so he found himself in Jade's office more often than not.

"….that's His Majesty's personal pen, Guy. I keep him there so he'll be far away from me and I can do my work in peace."

"I don't think he'd appreciate you calling this pile of books his pen, or your treatment of him as your pet."

"He started it," Jade said, sounding affronted.

Guy had sorted out all the books on the floor and reorganised them in piles. He picked up one on fontech and started reading it, leaning against the wall. They sat there in companionable silence for a few hours, until Jade finally put down his pen and stacked his papers neatly.

"Well, you're much quieter than the Emperor…oh, I see. _A Study of Malkuthian Fonic Technology_. Of course, you with your creepy obsession…"

"It is not a creepy…oh whatever." Guy rolled his eyes.

Jade stood up and stretched his arms. "You also cleaned up the Emperor's corner. I should really just keep you around all the time."

"As much as you're a sarcastic bastard, I think I honestly wouldn't mind."

A knock at the door startled Guy, and it opened to let in Lucia, in her dress instead of her uniform. "Jade! We have news about the terror group." She noticed Guy on the floor, and nodded politely at him.

"So, have you caught them?"

"We've rounded up what we hope is all of them, and the trial before the Emperor is set to be in two days. You two are expected to appear as witnesses."

"That will be fine. I'm sure Guy can explain everything there." Jade looked at Guy, smiling.

"Me again?" Guy said, grinning at Jade.

"What I don't get," said Peony with his mouth full of food, "is why I've never heard of any black-haired gorgeous lady called Valencia of Kimlasca. When did we even have chicks from Kimlasca hanging around here? How could you possibly score a chick without me having known about it?!" Peony downed a glass of wine, conveying as much indignation as he could in that action. He then tapped his chin with a finger. "Perhaps it's precisely that…she hasn't seen me, so she goes for Jade. That must be it. When do I get to meet her?"

"Never," said Jade smoothly, without looking at Guy. "She went home. Couldn't stand the Emperor here, she said. Too flamboyant and looks prettier than her." Guy choked on his salad.

"Well!" Peony glared at Jade. "Perhaps Lucia was just imagining things. You, on a date with a girl? That's just impossible."

"I suppose it is," said Guy with a small smile.


End file.
